He Posed As Doctor For Years. How A Patient's Death Exposed Him

A young man, armed with stolen documents and a borrowed identity, posed as a doctor for years, even working at a private and a government hospital. His secret would likely have remained buried had a railway officer not bothered to find out about the doctor's past after his mother's death in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur. 

The incident occurred at Marble City Hospital, where Manoj Kumar, a railway officer, had admitted his ailing mother. As her condition worsened, the doctors allegedly mentioned she needed ventilator support. However, the hospital's records later claimed that the family had refused the ventilator - something Manoj strongly denies.

Sensing discrepancies, Manoj began probing into the identity of the doctor who treated his mother. What he unearthed was nothing short of a medical thriller - the man posing as Dr Brijraj Uike was in fact Satyendra Nishad. He had assumed a false identity to become a doctor.

Satyendra, investigators say, stole the Class 12 marksheet and other documents of his school friend, the real Brijraj Uike, a painter from Katni, and used them to gain MBBS admission under the tribal quota in 2018.

"He and I studied 12th together in Katni," said Brijraj Uike, the man whose identity was stolen. "I was shocked to hear a patient had died, and that my name was being used by someone as a doctor. I had reported my documents missing way back in 2012."

With those forged credentials, Satyendra cleared medical entrance, entered medical college, completed his MBBS, got Medical Council of India (MCI) registration, and even did a super-specialisation. He then worked at a government hospital for two years before joining the private sector - all while masquerading as Brijraj.

Dr Sanjay Mishra, Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) of Jabalpur, said, "Every registered hospital must submit valid doctor credentials. In this case, starting from the Class 12 marksheet, tampering has been found. We verify certificates from the university and MCI. But if those documents are fake from the beginning, the fraud becomes harder to detect. Police action is now essential."

The case was taken up by the Omti police station, which registered a case under IPC sections relating to fraud, forgery, impersonation, and misuse of reservation benefits.

Sonu Kurmi, City Superintendent of Police (CSP), said, "We received a complaint from Manoj Kumar, a railway officer, who was suspicious after his mother's death at Marble City Hospital. When he tried to speak to the doctor, he was not allowed. He then suspected the doctor was fake. Our investigation confirmed that the man treating patients was Satyendra Nishad. He used forged documents of his friend Brijraj to clear NEET and complete MBBS. A case has been registered and a team has been formed to arrest the accused, who is currently absconding."